Report by Dan McGuire

There was some concern as we headed east from the Seattle area, up and over Snoqualmie pass in the Cascade Range with its heavy overcast sky and snow, piled high where the plows had moved it off the highway, gave a chill to the air. Was it perhaps too early in the year to be cycling in the mountains? But any concerns soon evaporated in the enthusiasm of meeting the other cyclists at Cle Elum where we abandoned our cars and readied our gear for the first leg of the tour – cycling to Ellensburg. There was 20 of us: six from the Vancouver area, six from Vancouver Island, one from Ottawa, and seven from the Seattle area. We were supposed to carry our own gear on the bikes, but thanks to the offer from Roger and Marilyn we were able to have our panniers transported in their van, for which we were all thankful. In the eleven days of activity we had no rain whatsoever, although our rain jackets were handy to wear in the chilly morning air, and many days were filled with glorious sunshine.

Robin and Dan ingeniously devised a tour of three segments, which included a wide variety of scenic, cultural, historic, and culinary interests while looking after our comfort and accommodation. The first was a four-day circuit to the Columbia River, Cycling down it for a bit then turning west to Yakima, and back to Cle Elum. The first day was a short 40 km and we hadn’t even got out of Cle Elum before we had to visit the historic bakery with its huge oven and adjacent bakery house, all brick buildings.

The route along the Yakima River was scenic and included the old water powered grist mill at Thorpe where the turbine turned a generator, and the mill owner allowed town folk to run their washing machines one day per week and people to read and do homework in the evening; it turned out to be one of the first electrical distribution systems in the state. That evening in Ellensburg, we all ate at the Yellow Church, a former Lutheran church built in 1923 but now a fine diner. The second day included a visit to the old Olmstead homestead, a climb up over a height of land with a wonderful long downhill run through Schnebly Coulee, and a visit to the Ginkgo Petrified Forest Sate Park with it’s elaborate interpretative centre overlooking the Columbia river. There was a bit of concern when we had to cross the Columbia on the I-90 bridge sharing a lane with the trucks, but they were respectful of cyclists, giving us lots of room and moving to the left lane when they could. We spent the night in Desert Aire, a small golf resort community.

The next day was all blue sky as we cycled along the Columbia then crossed it and headed through sagebrush country over the Yakima Ridge and through the fertile Moxee Valley with its farms, orchards, hop yards and vineyards to Yakima. The Cinco de Mayo was being celebrated by the many Mexican immigrants living in the area. Next day we headed up the scenic Yakima Canyon to Ellensburg and retraced our route, into a fierce headwind, to Cle Elum. Then it was into our cars and over Blewett Pass to Wenatchee.

The second segment of the tour was five days from Wenatchee to the north end of Lake Chelan and return. We started by cycling along the bike path, which runs the length of both sides of the Columbia as it passes through Wenatchee, and crossed the river on a utility bridge for cyclists and pedestrians as well as water pipes. Then it was up the east side of the Columbia through dry country with irrigated orchards, and a few places to stop for snacks including fresh apple cider. We crossed the river again and cycled up the high steep bank to the town of Chelan on the southerly end of Lake Chelan

Next day we loaded our bikes and baggage onto the “Lady of the Lake”, a boat carrying passengers and cargo, for a four hour cruise to the small settlement of Stehekin at the north end. This narrow lake, scoured out by ancient glaciers, is about 80 km of superb scenery long by about 3 km wide and 450 metres deep (it’s deepest point is 170 metres below sea level), which makes it the 3rd deepest lake in the nation. It stretches deep into the Cascade Range where at the north end there is about 5 km of paved road then 12 km of gravel to the Pacific Crest Trail. We stayed two nights at the Stehekin Landing Resort, cycling a bit on the few roads at the end, hiking through mountain forests and meadows with their freshly blooming flowers, to Rainbow Falls, and enjoying the fine breakfasts and dinners at the lodge.

The boat returned us to Chelan in the late afternoon of the third day, and next morning we cycled along Lake Chelan for about 14 scenic km then up and over a hump and back to the west bank of the Columbia and to Wenatchee. Along the river we stopped for a tour of the Rocky reach hydroelectric dam and its huge turbine room and sophisticated fish ladders where large salmon could be seen swimming up-river. Another stop was at the beautiful and unique Ohme gardens, built over 42 years by a Wenatchee orchardist family on the banks high above the river.

The third segment was a two-day hub and spoke out of Leavenworth, a mountain town that transformed itself from a lumbering and agricultural community to a recreation and tourism destination with a Bavarian theme. We started by driving to Leavenworth then headed down the Wenatchee River Valley on side roads through orchard filled countryside to Cashmere where we visited the specialised candy factory of Aplets & Cotlets, who produce fruit and nut based candy. The tour was interesting and the samples delicious. Then down the valley a bit more to a busy bakery for lunch. On the return we stopped by a winery for tasting and supplies. Our last cycling day took us up the Chumstick Creek valley to Plain, then a meander through the pine tree forests bordering Chiwawa Loop Road to Lake Wenatchee. After lunch at a 50’s type cafe we headed down hill through Tumwater Canyon back to Leavenworth where our leader’s cousin owned a bakery-ice cream shop and we had our final reward. Well, almost final, that last evening we all gathered at a German restaurant for food and music.

We had cycled about 650 km through varied terrain and land use, many hills and some flat country, with the wind sometimes on our back but more notably into our face. But there was not a drop of rain; there were no accidents, and no flat tires. Robin and Dan have shown us another interesting area of their home state, arranging comfortable lodging for us, and guiding us on good roads and pathways through picturesque scenery. It was a terrific amount of work but it is very much appreciated by all of us. Many, many thanks indeed, Robin and Dan.